Sunsari, January 27

Signature Manang Marshyangdi Club advanced to the semi-finals of the Madan Bhandari Memorial International Invitational Itahari Gold Cup here today.

MMC, who won the recently-concluded Pulsar Martyrs Memorial A Division League, edged past hosts Rashtriya Jagriti Club 2-1 in the second quarter-final match of the tournament. Sujal Shrestha and Kamal Shrestha scored one goal each for MMC, while Umesh Rai netted for the home side.

Sujal Shrestha opened the scoring for MMC in the 37th minute, while Umesh Rai scored the equaliser in the 63rd minute. Kamal Shrestha then netted the winning goal in the 75th minute to guide MMC into last four. Kamal was named the man of the match and he earned Rs 10,000.

On Monday, Ruslan Three Star Club will take on Tribhuvan Army Club in the third quarter-final match. The two teams had played in the Ruslan Simara Gold Cup on Saturday. The Lalitpur-based ‘A’ division outfit Three Star avenged previous edition’s loss in final with a sudden-death victory over the departmental side to win their maiden title of the season.

A total of eight teams are taking part in the tournament organised by Rashtriya Jagriti Club. The winners of the tournament will be richer by Rs 1.6 million.